The 57-year-old millionaire strawberry farm director has been nominated by the Communist Party, but he’s openly proud of his wealth and rejects basic Communist dogmas.
Until 2010, Grudinin was a member of the main Kremlin party, United Russia. He has been openly critical of Russia’s current political and economic system, but avoided criticizing Putin. His nomination has been seen as an attempt by the Communists to broaden the party’s appeal beyond aging voters nostalgic for the Soviet Union.
Grudinin’s popularity has worried the Kremlin, and Russia’s state-controlled media ran reports about his alleged Swiss bank accounts in an apparent bid to deflate that support.
VLADIMIR ZHIRINOVSKY
The 71-year-old leader of the ultranationalist Liberal Democratic Party has won notoriety for his xenophobic statements. This will be the sixth time he has run for president. While Zhirinovsky has catered to nationalist voters with his fiery populist rhetoric, he has steadfastly supported Putin, and his party in parliament has invariably voted in line with the Kremlin’s wishes. He won 6 percent of the presidential vote in 2012.
via Skytunes Media UN http://ift.tt/2FHzOI2